The Family I Found
by CritterKid
Summary: An adventure through someone else's eyes.
1. Chapter 1

Authors notes:

This story was originally published many years ago, but for some reason it was never posted here. I'm not sure why I never posted here. The only thing I can think of is stuff happens. If you've read it before, then I thank you. If you haven't read it, then I hope you enjoy. Then why, you might be asking yourself, am I posting it again? The answer is simple: the next part is finished. Well, almost finished. It just needs to be edited, looked over one more time and tweeked in a few places. But, it will make no sense whatsoever if you don't read the first one first. So, I'm making the first one available again. There are some very real reasons why it's taken me so long to get the next part of this story to you, but I'll go into that when I post the next story, hopefully in the next few days. I hope you like it.

CritterKid

Usual disclaimers here. Anything you recognize does not belong to me. It all belongs to much smarter and much more creative people. I'm just borrowing the characters, playing with them for a while, and putting them back.

This is set after Threshold but before the rest of Season 5.

I love my life.

That's what I'm thinking now. I love my life. Sure, things have been shaky before, but now they're great. I have a wife and kids who I absolutely adore. My job is perfect. And most importantly I have my family back. Now don't get me wrong, my family was never missing or anything. It's just, after mom died our family seemed to fall apart. Dad became the enemy, Sam the peacemaker, and me... I guess I became the antagonist.

Dad and I never could seem to get along after that. Sam and I did all right, not perfect but okay. At least until she betrayed me and joined the Air Force. Okay, so I know it wasn't really betrayal. I knew her dream was to become an astronaut, and one of the easiest ways to do that was to join the military. I guess I just hoped my hatred of that institution would influence her and she would grow to hate it too. Purely selfish reasons too, it's easier to totally hate something and someone if you're not alone. Well, at least our relationship didn't totally go down the drain. It did suffer though, but I never did totally hate her like I did 'Dad'. Dad. Just the thought of him makes me smile now. Ever since the day when he, no they, showed up unexpectedly at my doorstep.

Sam had brought him to my house. At first, I didn't know what to think. Was she going to turn her back on me like I turned my back on dad? Or was she here to gloat, bringing what I could never have as some sort of twisted trophy. It wasn't until dad pulled me into a giant bear hug that I understood. She was still playing the peacemaker. Our relationship has been better ever since. He and Sam would stop by every once in a while, or sometimes he would come alone. He was trying and so I started trying. The next thing you know we're going on a family vacation. Just dad, Sam, and me, our first since mom died.

I look at the airport where I'm heading. Next exit, almost there. I'm here to pick up Sam. Apparently dad still had some last minute stuff to finish before he could take off. Sam offered to stick around with him, but he insisted he was fine.

So Sam is coming out now. We'll have a couple days to catch up and decide what we want to do before dad joins us. I pull the car into the nearly empty parking lot. 3 AM is really one of the best times to get a good parking space. I park and quickly grab my jacket as I head off to the terminal. I get to the gate just as her plane is being taxied in.

"Mark. Over here."

"Hey Sam." I reply as I go over and give her a big hug. "How was your flight?"

"Pretty boring. What's say we go grab some dinner before heading out to the house?"

"Dinner? Don't you know it is definitely midnight snack time."

"No, it is definitely dinner time. I'm starved."

"Okay, okay, you win." We continue our small talk until she has her bag and we make our way out to the car. Just as we get there, there's a brilliant flash of white light and then darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Oh man, what hit me? I slowly wake up from whatever knocked my lights out. Let's see, was I hit by a car..no, mugged..no, shot..no, kidnaped...maybe. I try to determine if I have any injuries, wishing I paid more attention in health class. No broken bones I think, but one killer headache. And I wish they would turn on the lights. "Hey let me out of here!" I start to shout, surprised when I hear an answer.

"Oh will you please just shut up!"

"Where am I?"

"On my ship."

"Why are the lights out?" I hear him laugh before he answers me.

"The lights are on. Your vision will return soon." What did he do to my vision. I start to panic. I'm blind I'm blind. No, I need to calm down. He said it would come back.

"Who are you?" Again he's laughing at me. What's up with that?

"What is it about the Tau'ri and names? Can't you just accept that I'm better than you without needing a name to curse. Back when Ra was ruling..."

I tune out his voice. What is he talking about? He must be high or something. Suddenly I see something move out of the corner of my eye. Yes, my sight's coming back just like he said it would. I wait for a minute and then look around. I seem to be in some sort of room, painted gold, with pictures of hieroglyphs on the walls. Maybe he's from Egypt, but what could he possibly want with me?

I turn my head in his general direction and notice another figure slumped on the ground. Curious as to who might be here with me, I crawl over in their direction, gasping when I see that it's Sam. "Sam."

Now I remember, we were heading out to the car. She still looks out cold so I turn her over onto her back and start checking for injuries. I see there's some sort of armband on her right arm and some sort of collar around her throat, but other than that she looks fine.

"What did you do to her?" I interrupt his speech. He looks at me curiously before seeing that I had found my sister.

"Oh, her? Don't worry about her, I can't do anything too damaging or else I won't get paid."

"What do you want with us?"

"You? Nothing with you, you were just in the way. It's her. She's the one I was after. As to why, I think I would rather wait to tell you. Don't want to ruin the surprise."

Sam, what have you gotten yourself into? I look at her again, noticing the armband and the collar.

"What are these for?"

"What, the infuser? It's my first line of defense. Don't want her to put up a fight."

"A fight? She's unconscious, what do you think she'll do?"

"Hey! If there's one thing I have learned, it is not to underestimate the members of SG-1. If she can escape from Hell, then what makes you think I can keep her here without help? Not to mention all those times they have died."

What was he talking about...Hell, died? He is definitely high.

"What about the collar?"

"That's my second line of defense. If she does manage to escape, that will insure she won't get very far." He gets up and goes into another room through a door I didn't even notice. Funny, I've never seen a door like that before, one that comes from three sides and locks in the middle. It reminds me of all those sci-fi shows. With nothing else to do I sit down next to Sam, waiting for her to wake up. Eventually she starts to stir.

"Sam?"

"Mark," she slurred a bit but otherwise she sounded fine. She started sitting up and opening her eyes.

"Don't worry, your sight will come back."

"Yeah, I know." How did she know? "Any idea who's hosting this party?"

"There was some guy here before. I asked him his name and he went off about tar something and ra something or other. So no, I don't know who, but I kinda know why. He said he was after you."

"What?"

"So I'm guessing you have no idea either." She shook her head slowly. "So how are you feeling?"

"Out of it, like I'm being drugged or something. It's hard to think right now."

"Yea, he put something on your arm, said it was an infuser or something like that. It might be something that's injecting you with drugs." I watch as her hand touches the 'infuser', slowly tracing it with her fingers.

"And speaking of drugs, I think he's got enough to last for a lifetime or two. No one can be this delusional. He's either crazy or high, and I'm betting he's high. He also put some kind of collar on you, don't know what it's supposed to do though." She quickly feels the collar before she starts looking around now. "How are your eyes doing?"

"They're getting better every minute." I jump to my feet when she starts to get up.

"Are you sure you should be moving?" She starts to sway and grabs me for support. She just nods and after a second raises her head and begins to walk to a wall.

"Sam, do you recognize any of these things?" I ask pointing to the lines of hieroglyphs.

"A couple of them." I was just about to ask her where from when suddenly there's a sound coming from the other room the strange guy went into. She signals me to be quiet. We can hear faint voices coming from the other side of the door, then another sound before it all goes quiet. After a few minutes, Sam motions for me to come over beside her, at the same time she reaches for a hieroglyph that looked like a sideways S and turns it. I was about to ask her what she was doing when the door opens. How did she know that would happen?

I follow her out of the room and get my first look at whatever it is we were in. I kinda figured we were in a ship, but I have never seen a bridge that looked like this. I was thrown out of my reverie when Sam goes to the center console, opens some sort of hatch, takes out a crystal and throws it against the wall.

"What are you doing?" She doesn't answer me, but grabs my hand and pulls me through another door. Where are we going now? Stepping through the door I find myself outside by what looks like some sort of forest. Wait a minute, I thought we were on a ship. Where's the water? She is running for the forest now, and I have to sprint to catch up with her. After what seems like hours, she stops and falls onto a fallen tree. I'm with her in a second as we both catch our breath.

"Samantha, what's going on here?" I ask between breathes.

"I'm not sure Mark." Not sure. I don't buy that for a second and my frustration and confusion are quickly turning into anger.

"Not sure! How can you say you're not sure about this. He said he was after you! You knew how to open that door. You knew your sight would come back. You probably know this guy too. And whatever you did to that... that thing back there, you knew exactly what you were doing. So I am going to ask you again. What the hell is going on?" The rage out of my system I collapse onto the log with my sister. I look in her eyes for an answer, expecting to find rage in them but seeing something I couldn't quite place. She comes over and gives me a quick hug before pulling back and looking me in the eye.

"Mark. I want to tell you everything, believe me I do. But I can't right now. Whatever he is giving me is messing with my head. I can barely speak to you let alone try to make sense of this whole thing." I watch her hang her head between her knees then figure out where I've seen that look in her eyes. As a rebellious teenager I used to hang out with people who used drugs, and I saw that look many times. My sister is high. Very high. And knowing that she wasn't high after she got off the plane, she must have been given something by that man.

"Hey you okay?" She raises her head to nod at me before lowering it again. "Maybe that's what he was doing with that infuser thingy, using it to give you some drugs to keep you out of it."

"Maybe. Can you take it off?"

"Let me see." She raises her arm out to me. I look at it for a second before I start tugging at it. After a few minutes I give up. "Sorry Sam, however it's hooked in, I can't figure it out." She nods and sits still for awhile. I can see she is shivering. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just a little cold." I glance around the forest. It's a nice day, the sun is shining without a cloud in the sky. I feel her forehead to see if she has a fever. Nope, must be an after effect of whatever he's pumping into her.

"So, this is your area of expertise. Should we get moving?" She nods again and then starts to stand up. I give her my hand and practically haul her up. She clings to me for dear life, like she has never stood on her own two feet before. Now I'm really getting worried. My sister is one of the strongest people I know. What could do this to her. After a minute or so it looks like she's almost back to normal and she cautiously lets go of my arm.

"So, where do you think we are?"

"Right where I want you to be."

We both look up as a third voice joins our conversation.


	3. Chapter 3

"I must admit, Major Carter, you're not quite as good as I thought you'd be. I expected you here twenty minutes ago. Are you feeling all right?" Man, what I wouldn't give to go over there and wipe that smug grin off of his face. It's only the sight of Sam that keeps me from doing that very thing. She looks like she's about to collapse.

"What did you do to her?"

He starts to laugh at me. "Well, let's see. First, there was the shock grenade. Then the infuser with the cvael. Cvael is supposed to react with naquadah in a very unpleasant way. And lastly there is the tracking collar, which is said to make you feel very... weak." He stops laughing and goes over and grabs Sam by the chin, forcing her to look him in the eyes.

"I think I might have found a way to keep you from running off. What do you think Major?"

She glares at him and he pushes her back watching as she collapses on the forest floor.

"Hey!" I rush over to my sister and help her sit up. "Leave her alone."

"Leave is right. Come on, let's go."

"Go? Go where?"

"To the chaapa'ai."

"The what?"

"Never mind. Just get up! We've got a long way to walk."

"Walk? How can she walk? Whatever you gave her is making it so she can barely sit up." He glares at me then grabs something off his clothes and starts doing something with it. My sister quickly tenses up, grabbing my hand in a death grip. Her eyes close and a sharp intake of breath tells me she's pain and not trying to show it. After a second, she relaxes and opens her eyes.

"Now can we get up and start moving. I have a schedule to keep." I'm about to argue again when Sam catches my eye. She nods and gives my hand a gentle squeeze before motioning for me to help her up. I do, and he starts leading us through the forest. I stay with Sam the whole time, she's really leaning on me. But slowly, she starts to get her strength back. By the time he's ready for a break, she can almost stand on her own. I help her sit on a log and then all but collapse to the ground beside her while he pours some sort of blue liquid in a bottle. Oh God I'm tired. I'll never know how these military types can do this. Sam just stares at him, with that thinking look in her eyes.

"You're the same race as Aris Boch aren't you?"

He glances up from his bottle and gives a quick shrug.

"So you're a bounty hunter too."

"Bounty hunter? Sam, what's going on?" I ask quietly, hoping that she had some idea.

"Mark, I promise I will tell you when I get it figured out. But for now I need you to trust me. Okay?" I nod and she puts a reassuring hand on my shoulder before she turns back to him. "So are you?"

"I'm the same race, yes, but I'm not a bounty hunter."

"You could have fooled me." He laughs. "What's so funny?"

"You are. You and your limited view. You probably think that bounty hunters are very methodical, going from one system lord to the next offering their services. Well let me tell you something. The kind of planning Aris did to capture that Tok'ra when you first met is not typical. They are no better than vagrants roaming the galaxy. They find someone wanted by a system lord and they turn them in. No planning, no strategy, no thinking ahead. They survive on plain dumb luck."

"So how are you different?"

"My services are much more... specialized."

"So you're a mercenary."

"That's one way of putting it."

"So what do you want?"

"You, Doctor Major Samantha Carter, astrophysicist, 2IC of SG-1, host to Jolinar of Malkshur. Now let's move." He stands up and I help my sister up. Now it seems most of her strength has come back and she only reaches for me when she stumbles, which is less and less frequent. Although happy at her returning strength, I am getting slightly upset. Without having to worry about Sam, I find myself thinking more and more about the situation we are in.

I realize I have no clue as to what's going on, but Sam does. She said she'd tell me, but I really want to know now. It's apparent that this man knows a lot about her. Maybe he was following her, or worse stalking her. Would he hurt her, or me for that matter. He obviously doesn't care about her safety, that infuser is still pumping whatever that stuff is into her. How does he know her? Is it from the work she does in Colorado? Surely working with satellites can't warrant this kind of... of what ... kidnaping, abduction? Abductions. Great. Now I'm going to be seeing aliens and flying saucers coming to take us away to be dissected. Maybe she used one of those telescopes to look through the window of the royal palace on one of those far away worlds.

Come on Mark. Focus here. She said she would tell me so she will. You trust her, right? I was brought out of my daydreaming when our captor suddenly stopped.

"Where are we going to?" This time we both collapsed on the ground and I was the first one to catch my breath.

"Right here."

"And now what?"

"Now we wait."

"For what?"

"For who, not what. We're going to be joined by some colleagues."

"Colleagues? Don't you mean employer?" My sister had finally caught her breath and was joining in the conversation.

"They said you were smart Major."

"So who are we meeting?"

"You know, I would tell you but I don't want to ruin the surprise."

"Oh come on. You don't still think that I can escape do you? What would it hurt to let me know who it is?"

"Okay, I'll tell you what. I'll tell you who's coming if you promise to be on your best behavior." She nods her head and he continues. "We're meeting an old friend of yours. Osiris."

"Osiris, what does she want with me?"

"Well, she wants to get back her power, prove herself to the system lords."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"To be honest, I'm not exactly sure, but I'm sure she'll be more than happy to explain it to you."

"Why now?"

"I don't know. I've been following you for several months now... Juna, Abydos, those weeks you spent in that Goa'uld palace, even Earth, just waiting for the signal to swipe you. It finally came."

"What about him?" she indicated in my direction.

"Him? Don't worry about him. I just grabbed him so he couldn't tell your team what happened. He should be fine as long as he doesn't do something stupid."

Something started beeping on his arm, interrupting the conversation. He picks it up and looks at it for a minute before turning back to Sam. "Now hold out your arm."

"Why?"

"You promised you'd be on your best behavior. This just assures me you will." She looks at him defiantly. "Okay, have it your way then." He pulls out some sort of weapon and points it in my direction. Oh shit.

"No. Here." She holds out her arm as he puts the weapon down. I am frozen as he rummages through his pocket, pulls out a vial with some red liquid in it, and puts it in the infuser. A few moments later Sam collapses on the ground, in the fetal position, whimpering and clutching her stomach. That sight quickly shatters my paralysis and I rush over to help her, barely registering the other people that have joined us. After a hurried discussion that I barely hear and my mind can't seem to follow, I feel pain all over my body. Then darkness claims me and I know no more.


	4. Chapter 4

Man, what a dream. My conscious mind isn't quite awake yet, but my subconscious mind is having a field day. I must have been drinking some heavy duty stuff while watching some late night weird movie. But why was Sam in it? Oh yeah, Sam was coming over. We were going on a family vacation, that's right. Was Sam here yet? I remember driving to the airport to pick her up, but I don't remember getting home. I remember getting as far as the parking lot and then... in a flash the last few events come crashing into my mind. I jerk my eyes open and sit up. I look around the cell... cell? Why did I call it a cell?

The room has one door and no windows. There are two cots, the one I'm sitting on and one on the other side of the room. I stand up and start walking around. Maybe I'll find something... yeah right... like I'd know what to look for. After a while, I have no way of knowing how long it really has been, I hear something outside. Footsteps coming this way. I back into the farthest corner as the door opens. Sam!

She is hanging limply between two guards before being roughly thrown inside. I hurry over to her side, kneel down and gently touch her shoulder. Anger flows through my veins when I see that she's been beaten. Bastards. I have no idea what to do. I haven't even had any first aid classes since the boy scouts.

I try to remember what they taught. Shock. She's probably going into shock. She needs to be kept warm. I look around the room for something, anything I can use. The cot. It's not much, but it's better than the cold floor. As I pick her up, I realize the collar is gone. Damn, that infuser is still on. At least it has that blue stuff in it instead of the red crap. The red stuff really did a number on her. After what seems like hours, she finally starts to stir. Her eyelids start to flutter and she moans quietly. When she finally gets her eyes all the way open she blankly stares at the wall. I talk to her but she doesn't talk back. I think that infuser is messing with her again. I just sit and hold her for awhile, trying to help and comfort her as best I can. Then I hear the guards coming to the door again. She hears them too and starts to panic, thrashing about with her arms and legs while trying to get away. I try to calm her down, but before I can do anything they come in and grab her. Then, I hear one of the most horrible sounds I have ever heard and never want to hear again. I hear my sister screaming.

This developed into a strange, horrible ritual. They would come for my sister. She would scream. She would stop screaming and they would bring her back and dump her in the room. I would hold her until she would wake up. Then they would come for her again. On the fourth or fifth trip, I discovered something wet on my hand when I picked her up. It was blood. I pulled up her shirt and looked at her back. Oh my God. Her back was covered in bloody welts. What did they do to her? Why? I wished for the millionth time that I knew what was going on. I sat there carefully holding Sam as I started drifting off, wondering if we would ever get out of this living nightmare.

The next time I awoke, I opened my eyes and saw the stone walls reaffirming the knowledge that my life was in Hell. And, once again, my sister was gone. I got up and stretched. I heard the guards coming back. Thinking they were returning my sister, I was surprised when they shoved two men into the room.

"Thank you very much." he shouted at the guards as they left. "Teal'c you okay?"

"I am fine O'Neill." O'Neill, Teal'c. Those were the names of the people who worked with Sam. I let my courage build up before I waved and got their attention.

"Mark, Mark Carter? Is that you?"

"Yeah. You work with my sister, right?"

"Yeah. You know there's a lot of people looking for you. You've been missing for four days now. We were starting to think the worse."

"Well they grabbed me when they grabbed Sam. I guess they didn't want me telling anybody what I knew, which is very little. What's going on here?"

"Tell me what you know and I'll tell you what we know. Hopefully we'll figure it out."

I quietly began my tale. "I was meeting Sam at the airport. We were walking out to my car when suddenly there was a flash of light. The next thing I know, I'm waking up is some weird room with some weird guy talking to us. When Sam woke up, she managed to open the door. I thought we escaped, but the guy was waiting for us. He had us walk through the forest to meet some friends, and someone must have bonked me over the head because next thing I know I'm waking up here. Sam was here, but they keep taking her away. They're hurting her, and I don't know how to help."

"I know they're hurting her Mark. But don't worry, we have a plan to get her out." Before O'Neill could tell me anything else the cell door was opened again. Someone was pushed through and it was a complete surprise to see that it was my father.

"Dad! What are you doing here?"

"Mark! I'm so glad you're safe." He came and gave me a great big bear hug.

"Jacob, did you see Sam?" He nodded but didn't let go of me. Was he crying? Dad didn't cry.

"Dad? Are you okay?" He nodded again but still didn't let go of me. "Then can you please tell me what the hell is going on here?"

"Osiris." I pulled back in shocked surprise. The voice came from the man that was holding onto me, but it was not his voice. He raised his head and his eyes glowed. "Mark Carter. It is an honor to finally meet you."

"Dad? What happened to you."

"Perhaps we should begin at the beginning." Dad pointed to the cots and after some work we pulled them closer together so we could sit down and talk. Then all three of them, or four as I would later find out, started telling me one of the strangest stories I've ever heard. Stargates, traveling to other planets, aliens that lived inside humans, saving the earth, the secret war that was being fought inside the mountain. They told me everything.

I was speculative at first, who wouldn't be. This was too much, it can't be real. But then dad told me about his first reaction to learning everything. I don't know why I still listened to them. Maybe I was bored, there wasn't anything else to do in the room anyway. Maybe I thought it was a joke, and Sam would be coming through the door yelling 'You're on Candid Camera.' Maybe in some part of my mind I believed them, it would explain some stuff. I sat there quietly thinking about this Stargate when we heard the guards coming. They opened the door and took dad away.

I sat in stunned silence for a time, thankfully the other two men knew I would need time to digest all this information and weren't talking to me. I wasn't sure if I believed them or not, but right now I really didn't care. I looked up and saw their faces watching me intently.

"Colonel, you said you had a plan for getting Sam out of here?"

"Yes, we do."

"How did you know where we were?"

"Basically Jacob got a video of Osiris hurting Sam. She told us the planet to come to, when to come, and warned us not to bring weapons or contact anybody. She said if we didn't do everything she said, something worse would happen to Sam."

"Sounds like a ransom demand."

"That's what is basically is." O'Neill was silent again as I buried my head in my hands, fighting back tears of desperation.

"Why now? Why does someone have to come and ruin our lives just when we get them back on track." I sit there for a minute before I look up to face O'Neill again. "I have a question. Why would she say to not tell anyone? Who could my dad possibly tell about this?"

"He could have informed the Tok'ra High Council." So Teal'c does speak English. I was beginning to wonder about that.

"What difference would that make?"

"The Tok'ra would never have authorized Jacob to come here."

"Did dad just get back?"

"Yeah, he got back to Earth right before you were kidnaped. Why?"

"I was just thinking about something the kidnapper said. He said something about following her for a while before getting a signal to take her."

"Guess we know why. This is one well thought out plan that's for sure."

"Speaking of plans, you said you had a plan to get her out of here?"

"Another team is coming through the Stargate soon. We figured the guards on the gate would be less after we came through and another team could secure it. If all goes according to plan they'll be able to waltz right on in here soon and get us out."

I nodded my head in understanding and sat back down to wait for dad. While we waited for them to bring him back, I asked O'Neill and Teal'c some more questions. We pretty much had everything sorted out except why we were here when they brought dad back. He looked terrible, nothing physical, more.. emotional. When did dad get so emotional?

"Jacob. You okay?"

"I saw Sam again. She doesn't look good."

"Any idea what Osiris is doing here?"

"A very good one Jack. In typical Goa'uld fashion she explained everything to me. Everything she has done to Sam. Everything she'll do to Sam. Everything." His voice broke as he was overcome by emotion.

"Jacob, I know this is hard for you, but we need to know as much as we can if we want to escape this place." Dad nodded and bowed his head. When he looked back up, it was as though he had put on a new face and I realized that Selmac must be in control. Man, that's a weird thought.

"Please forgive Jacob. It was not easy for him to watch his daughter being tortured." At the mention of torture everyone's face paled, including my own. I knew she was beaten, but didn't quite understand the extent of the beatings. It was O'Neill who found his voice first.

"Why?"

"For information." He was going to say more but was interrupted by the sound of the guards coming back. Opening the door, they threw in the limp form of my sister. We all ran forward as soon as they left. I watched as Teal'c gently picked her up and laid her on the cot. Then they began to tear their shirts into strips to make some bandages... why didn't I think about that. Finally they started to clean her up as much as they could. When they were finished we started talking again.

"What information did they want from her?"

"They don't want anything from her."

"What! Is this some sort of game for the sick bastard?"

"No Jack. This wasn't a game. They did this to her for information, but they don't want the information from her. She wants me to give her information on the Tok'ra."

"And she's using Sam against you. Psychological warfare."

"Right."

"Why?"

"Osiris is trying to win back the favor of the system lords. Destroying the Tok'ra is a pretty good way to get it."

"Great. Could this get any worse?" We sat in silence until Sam started to wake up. As soon as she was awake the guards came in and took her and dad away. This situation was hopeless. I laid back on the cot and closed my eyes, listening to the other two guys trying to come up with an contingency plan. Exhaustion soon overcame me and I fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

"Mark, time to get up. Mark!" My sleep was interrupted by this very insistent voice. I mumbled something before trying to turn around. "Mark. Time to get outta here. Come on."

Get outta here? That sounded good. I open my eyes and find that our cell now has five new guys in it. They all are wearing military camouflage and have very big guns. "Don't worry, they're the good guys. Can you move." I nod and let them help me up while I look at the new arrivals, but I don't see the two faces I want to.

"Where's dad and Sam?"

"Osiris hasn't brought them back yet. We're going to get to a safe position and come back for them."

"What! We can't leave them here. What happened to nobody gets left behind. I thought that was one of the major phrases for the military."

"So is don't let the civilian get hurt. Our first priority is to get you to safety."

"I'm not going without my family." I sit back down on the cot to illustrate my point. "I'll do whatever you want me to do, but I'm not leaving without them."

"Alright, you win." His quick surrender told me he didn't want to leave them any more than I did. "But you have to do everything I tell you to. No questions, no hesitations." I nod my agreement.

"Daniel, as a fellow civilian I'm putting you in charge of him. Keep close and don't let him get hurt okay." Another man in the room nodded. "Okay. Let's move."

The group started moving down the corridor outside the cell. Slowly we made our way toward the main part of the building.

"O'Neill, up ahead is the main chamber. That is where Major Carter and General Carter would be brought to be tortured." He nods and starts using hand signals that I can't follow.

As we reach the double doors of the room, all we hear is silence. Cautiously they enter the room with their guns drawn before giving the all clear. The guy standing next to me, I think his name was Daniel, says we can go in now. I enter to a sight that will forever haunt my sleep.

Dad and Sam were both chained up, hanging from chains coming down from the ceiling so that they were just barely touching the floor. They were facing each other. My sister was nearly unconscious and my father had a look of pain that was purely emotional. It didn't take me long to figure out what happened, and I didn't like it. It did take a minute for me to realize that everyone was just standing here.

"Help them!"

"We're tying to Mark. There's some kind of barrier here. It won't let us through. We're trying to find another way in now. Teal'c any idea what this is?"

"Many Goa'uld palaces have structures such as this. It is a place to spy upon their guests without being seen."

"Guess we came through the wrong doors. Any idea how to open it?"

"There should be a panel somewhere." We began looking around the area.

Suddenly a door opened in the room. Everyone instinctively ducked onto the ground and watched. A lady came through the door surrounded by guards. As she reached my family, she stopped and stared, a wicked smile forming on her lips that somehow matched the viciousness in her eyes.

"Have you thought any more about what I offered you?"

"I have and I will never betray the Tok'ra."

"Then it is your daughter that will pay the price. Let's begin." She said something to one of the guards. He left and returned seconds later with a vial of the blue drug and a vial of a yellow one. He undid the restraint holding her arm and put the two vials into the infuser before re-chaining her. The lady then picked up a whip and moved back towards Sam. The yellow stuff must have been some kind of stimulate because Sam seemed more awake now then when we first walked in.

She began to use the whip against my sister, stopping every so often to ask dad the location of the Tok'ra. Every time he wouldn't respond she would go back to hurting Sam. Sam couldn't hold in her agony for very long and soon she was screaming with each stroke. Soon she got tired of the whip and moved to the next torture device.

The big long table of to the side had many different things on it, and I now know that they are all torture tools. She gracefully put the whip on the table and picked up something that looked like a stick with two prongs sticking out of it. She went back to Sam and started repeating the process. She continued this for what seemed like hours, every so often getting bored of the torture tool she was using and getting a new toy. It was an interruption by a guard that finally ceased Sam's torture. They had a short conversation that I couldn't follow before she stormed out of the room, the guards following her.

"Teal'c what's going on?" Colonel O'Neill's pale face dueled sharply with the fury in his eyes at having to watch the torture of his friend.

"The guards at the Stargate have not reported in. They sent a small group to investigate and they also have not reported in. Osiris is now personally going to find out what has happened."

"Find that door panel now! Ferretti, how many men do you have guarding the Stargate?"

"Two Colonel."

"Recall them. They won't stand a chance against an angry Goa'uld. Set up a rendevous place in the forest."

"Sir, we found the panel."

"Okay, Ferretti, after you contact your men take SG-2 and start securing a way outta here. We'll be right behind you." Without waiting for an answer Colonel O'Neill charged into the room, the rest of us closely behind him. Dad saw us out of the corner of his eye and started to relax, though he never moves his eyes away from Sam's face. SG-2 quickly goes into the hallway, securing our exit. That leaves the four of us to free dad and Sam. Teal'c gently nudges my shoulder indicating I should follow him. We quickly head over to where dad is chained, while Daniel and Colonel O'Neill race over to Sam.

We got Dad down at the same time the others were undoing Sam's chains. She gave a soft cry as her chains came undone and slumped into the waiting arms of Daniel like a ragdoll. They gently laid her down on the floor and began looking at her wounds. It was bad, lines on her back criss-crossed each other, blood flowing out from the deeper cuts. They were talking to her while they looked her over, telling her everything was okay now, although I don't know how much she really heard. Amazingly she was still awake, although the way she blankly stared out into space and didn't respond to anything told me it was just because of the drugs they had given her.

They were finishing up when the radio cracked to life. The voice on the other side was saying that Osiris was on her way back and didn't look happy. That convinced us to get moving, dad gently picking up Sam and carrying her. We managed to make it outside and hide in the forest before we saw Osiris walking by. Then we heard a very angry scream. She knew we escaped.


	6. Chapter 6

I watch as Colonel O'Neill gently treated my sister's wounds. We had been running for about two hours before O'Neill decided it was safe to rest. Now it was just me, dad, and the group of people known as SG-1. The other guys started to scout around, looking for a safer place to hide. They had left the medkit and he gave Sam a shot of morphine. She was finally asleep and they were using that time to clean and dress her wounds. He had just finished when the other men returned. "Report."

"The Stargate is heavily guarded by Jaffa, sir. We managed to find Roberts and Johnson so we're back to full strength. And we did find a nice little cave that seems to be just what the doctor ordered."

"Alright, let's move over there." Dad again picks up Sam as we started to follow the other group of men. Soon we're at the cave they were referring to. It's nestled in the side of a mountain, high enough to give a good view of the surrounding area, but still low enough to be easy to reach. We quickly get inside, two of the soldiers move off to check out the cave just to make sure nothing was living in it while O'Neill checked over my sister's wounds one more time.

He gently rolled her onto her stomach to make sure that none of the bandages had fresh blood on them. Satisfied she wasn't going to bleed to death in the next hour or so, he gently probed the other marks and bruises on her body, stopping when he came to the infuser.

"What's this?" He turned to me for an answer.

"I don't know. Whoever kidnaped us in the first place put it on. Sam thinks it's something to administer drugs."

"Well that doesn't sound good. Let's take it off." Colonel O'Neill began to pull at the infuser just like I did, with the same amount of luck. When Teal'c came over and tried to remove it, it still wouldn't budge.

"Damn. I guess Doc will have to take it off when we get home." He continued his inspection and gently rolled her onto her side, putting a blanket over her still form. When he was satisfied Sam was as comfortable as she could be he called the other men back.

"Okay, what is the exact situation with the Stargate?"

"The last we saw it was guarded by ten maybe fifteen Jaffa. They were building some sort of canon, but it looks like it is pointing towards the Stargate, not the forest."

"Teal'c?"

"That would be a likely assessment O'Neill."

"What about the Jaffa?"

"It would depend on how many Jaffa she would have been able to gather. There will be a large force guarding the Stargate, and several scouting groups hunting us." O'Neill was about to ask another question when Daniel interrupted him.

"Teal'c, you don't know that though. Maybe she doesn't have that many Jaffa. Maybe the ten or so at the gate is it. She has been gone for a while and it takes time to get an army together."

"Daniel Jackson is correct. It depends on the number of Jaffa she has been able to amass."

"Alright. Daniel, how much more daylight do we have here?"

"According to the preliminary scans done, it is just a little bit longer rotation than earth so I'd say four or five, maybe six hours depending on their dawn."

"Alright, Ferretti you and your men secure the area. Streams, rock formations, places where the ground will suck you in, I want to know everything about this area. Maintain radio silence and report back here in four hours. Understood?" With a quick nod from their leader SG-2 left.

"Jacob, I know you have other things on your mind right now, but we need your help with this. We need to go have a look at the Stargate and see what were dealing with. Okay?" Dad gave a quick nod and Colonel O'Neill glanced in my direction before turning towards the other man.

"Daniel, I need you to stay here and take care of Sam and Mark. Show him how to use a zat just in case. Okay?" Another quick nod.

"Let's move out then. Oh, and Daniel. Don't use your radio. They might have a way to track the signal. We'll be back before the sun sets." And then they took off, leaving me with Daniel.

"So now what do we do?"

"Now we wait for them to come back. You hungry?"

"Actually now that you mention it, I am."

"Well I think I can scrounge up a field ration for you. It's not the best food in the world but it is food." He began looking through the packs while he was talking. He pulled out some kind of cooking thing and began to warm up one of the packets.

"Hey, do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Shoot."

"Back there when we were getting rescued Colonel O'Neill said you were a civilian."

"Yeah. I guess I should introduce myself. I'm Dr. Daniel Jackson."

"A doctor?"

"Not a medical doctor. I'm an anthropologist and the team linguist. Basically, I'm the culture expert."

"So your not in the military?"

"No. I wouldn't even dream of joining. It's all to strict and formal for my tastes."

"Isn't it a bit unusual to have a civilian in a military operation?"

"No, not this time. What exactly have they told you?"

"They told me about the Stargate and about the Goa'uld."

"Okay, then I guess it won't hurt to tell you a little more. We use the Stargate to explore other worlds. Sometimes the worlds are populated by people, usually descendants of various Earth cultures, the Mongols, the Romans, Egyptians, Vikings, and other such groups. Because of this, they try to have a linguist with each team. More often than not the linguist is a civilian. And then there are the people who work in the mountain itself who never go through the Stargate. Lot's of civilian scientist from every branch."

"So is there a civilian with that other group of men?"

"SG-2? No. They're all military. The civilian members usually don't go through when it's a strict combat mission."

"Then why are you here?"

"Because Sam was in trouble."

"She means a lot to you doesn't she?"

"She's like the sister I never had." He glances briefly in her direction before focusing on me again.

"What do you mean?"

"I was brought up in foster care, and for a long time, I was on my own. Then I came here. This team is my family now." He hands me a bowl with some brown stuff in it. "It's supposed to be beef stew. I'd eat it now. It really tastes bad when it cools down."

I give him a quizzical look as he hands me a spoon and starts making another one. I remember eating these as a kid. From what I can remember I hated them. But this one is actually tasting good. I must be hungry. I watch as he finishes making the second one. As he grabs a spoon I'm thinking he is going to join me. I'm surprised when he starts making his way over to Sam. I look over in her direction. She's awake and looking at Daniel as he moves toward her.

"Hey Sam. I know you hurt and are tired but I need you to eat something, okay." She weakly nods and he helps her sit up. He sits behind her so that she is leaning on his chest instead of the rock wall. Her hand is shaking so much that she can barely hold the spoon she was reaching for.

"It's okay Sam." He covers her shaking hand with his steady one and begins to feed her. I watch as he gently forces her to eat everything before laying her back down and covering her with another blanket. I glance down at my own bowl, surprised to find that I had eaten everything. I look back at Daniel. He was still by my sister's side, talking gently to her, their hands still entwined. After a couple of minutes he gently puts her hand back beneath the blankets and tucks her in snugly.

"Is she okay?"

"Yeah Mark. Just had a bad dream." He quietly comes back to the place we were talking. "Jack wanted me to show you how to use a zat gun." He pulls out a weapon that looks a lot like the one that strange man pulled on me. He tells me how it works, shows me how to fire it and let's me take a few practice shots on a nearby rock. I'm amazed as the rock vanishes before my eyes.

"I never thought I would even fire a gun, let alone hold an alien one. I don't know if I'll be able to shoot."

"I know what you mean. The first time Jack thrust a pistol in my hands I thought he was crazy. But it's surprising how quickly you'll pull the trigger if your friends are in danger."

"You don't strike me as one of those 'shoot first ask questions later' people."

"I'm not. Trust me when I say I always look for the peaceful solution. But if there is one thing I've learned, it's that sometimes there is no other way. People won't listen, or they don't care, or they want to fight, or any million other reasons. Sometimes they just don't give us the choice."

"Are the Goa'uld like that?"

"The Goa'uld are evil. They enslave thousands of world, millions of innocent people, just so they will be worshiped. They have no value for life whatsoever. To them, humans are little more than guinea pigs. Anyone who opposes them are brutally wiped out, some worlds devastated for no reason. They're not interested in peace, only conquest." He said the words so coldly that I involuntarily shuttered.

"That's what dad is now?"

"No. He's a Tok'ra."

"What's the difference?"

"Well, there's no real physical difference, they are the same race, but there is a mental difference. The Goa'uld are like Hitler, the Tok'ra like Roosevelt. It's probably not one of the better comparisons but it pretty much sums up their mentalities. If you still have questions, ask Jacob. He knows the Tok'ra best." He suddenly holds up his hand, signaling for quiet, and moves to the cave entrance and listens. I join him and soon we both hear the footsteps.

They are coming this direction, but the metal clanky sound they're making makes me think they're not the good guys returning. Sure enough out of the forest comes three people. They're dressed in the same manner as the guards from the prison. Daniel quickly ducts down, pulling me down with him. He crawls over to some rocks where he will be able to see them without having them see us. When he crawls back his face tells me everything I need to know.

"They're coming up here aren't they?"

"They split up. One is heading back to the forest, one heading off to the other mountains, and one is coming up here."

"Do you think we can hide from them?"

"No. Give me the zat." I give it to him and we hide ourselves in the rocks. After what seems like an eternity I hear the footsteps outside the entrance. For a second he just stands there and I'm hoping he will just go away. At least until I hear him enter the cave.

As he rounds the corner, Daniel shoots him and he drops to the floor writhing in pain.

"There's some rope in the pack there. Can you get it for me?"

"You're not going to kill him?"

"No. That wouldn't accomplish anything. When he fails to check in other Jaffa will come here to find him. Even if we disintegrated his body it's obvious we've been here. We need to get going as fast as we can."

"Going? Going where?"

"Anywhere but here. Come on, we don't have much time." He finishes tying up the Jaffa and starts to put things back into the pack. "You carry Sam, I'll take the pack. SG-2 should be around here somewhere. Hopefully we'll run into them." I nod as I bend down to pick up my sister. She stirs but thankfully doesn't waken.

I turn back toward Daniel and we head towards the cave entrance.

"You do know what you're doing, right?"

"Not exactly, but it's better than waiting for him to wake up. Besides, Jack will find us." With that Daniel begins to climb down the mountain. I carefully follow him. We head into the forest. Daniel says there are more places to hide there. I glance up at the sky. The sun is setting. That means dad should be back soon.

After walking for a couple hours Daniel stops, says we should take a break and asks me if I want to switch. I tell him no, that I'm okay, and look down at Sam. I don't know why I told him that, Sam is getting heavier by the minute and the pack would be a welcome change. I think that I just need to hold her, make sure she's alive. To be completely honest, after what this Osiris did to her, I don't think that I'll ever be able to let her out of my sight again. I glance up when I realize that Daniel is holding something out to me. I nod in appreciation as I take the canteen and take a few gulps of water. As he takes the canteen back I watch as he lifts up Sam's head and helps her take a few sips. As he signals the end of our break it starts to rain lightly.

He rummages through the pack and finds some sort of rain poncho. He hands one to me while he drapes the other one around Sam. After we're taken care of he says we should start moving again. I ask him about his poncho and he tells me there were only two. Says he'll be fine until we find shelter. We start walking again and an hour later we find the perfect shelter. By this time the light rain has turned into a downpour and we are happy to find some shelter.

A rocky outcropping forms a ledge overhead, while some dead trees have fallen against it, making a kind of makeshift tent. And in front of it are some big bushes , practically hiding the entrance. Daniel says it's perfect, that with the wind and the rain the Jaffa would walk right past without even noticing. I have my doubts, but we push through the bushes into the 'tent'. Daniel's right, it does keep out the rain and the wind is down to a small breeze. But it's very cold.

I carefully lay Sam on the ground. The blankets she was covered with are damp, but the poncho managed to keep them from getting completely soaked like Daniel. I just about jump when I hear her voice. It's so quiet I have to lean down to hear what she says.

I look to Daniel when she says she's cold. He tells me that we can't risk a fire. Then he tells me to climb under the blankets with Sam so that we can share body heat. I'm a little uncomfortable with this at first, but I do what he says. I climb under and position myself so I'm on my side with one arm flung over her chest. She's unconscious again, but I can see her shivering. I'm about to tell Daniel, to ask him what to do next, when I notice that I'm starting to feel warmer. I didn't even know I was so cold. I look at Sam again. Her shivers are almost gone. I look up and realize Daniel has been watching us the whole time. He tells me to get some sleep and he'll take first watch. At the mention of sleep I realize how tired I am. I mumble something about waking me up so he can sleep before drifting off.


	7. Chapter 7

I wake up a few hours later. The rain has stopped and the clouds have left leaving a clear view of the sky. I lie still for a minute watching the three moons in the sky full of stars I have never seen. As I watch I faintly hear the sound of someone humming. I turn my head and see that it's Daniel. He moved over to the other side of Sam and is humming to her. "Daniel?"

"Mark. How long have you been awake?"

"A few minutes. What's going on?"

"A Jaffa patrol passed by about twenty minutes ago. They went right by us but I don't know where they are now. Sam started getting a little... disturbed. Since they might be close by I thought I would try to calm her down before she wakes up screaming." I look at my sister. Again she's asleep, a very peaceful look on her face.

"It seems to be working. Look Daniel, why don't you get some sleep. I'll take watch or keep lookout or whatever it is you call it."

"Okay. Whatever you do don't leave our little tent. If you start hearing noises wake me up." He hands me the zat gun and slips under the blanket to Sam, assuming the same position I had. "And remember, the first shot just knocks things out. Don't be afraid to shoot anything that comes in, even if it's the good guys. Better safe than sorry and I know they'd understand." I nod and move to the spot that Daniel was at.

I stare up at the stars for a moment before looking back towards them. He's already asleep. He must have been exhausted. I turn my head again toward the stars, and absently wonder which one is Earth. Earth. Home. I wonder if I'll ever see it again. My wife, my kids, my life. My life, which up until a week ago, was perfect. Now, I'll never be the same. I have no doubt that they will ask me to not tell anyone. It must be a secret, and a pretty big one. How else could you explain the fact that my dad has an alien living inside him and he never even bothered to tell me. And Sam was even worse. From what I think I understand, she's been with it from the start. And this probably isn't the only time that she's been captured, kidnaped, or tortured. Don't they think that I would like to know these things.

Oh no, I'm getting mad again. Mad at Sam. Mad at dad. Mad at everyone. But mostly mad at myself for not noticing. I start feeling like the dumb idiot who believed people who are being abused when they say they ran into the doorknob and fell down the stairs. I turn my head back towards Sam. She's starting to stir, but not in the right way. She's starting to tremble and moving her head back and forth haphazardly. Her arms and legs start twitching, and I think they would be thrashing about if her muscles would obey the commands. I realize that she's having a nightmare. As I watch, her movements become more frantic and I start to hear whimpering. I think about what Daniel told me, about screaming herself awake, and I'm thinking that would be a bad thing right now.

I quickly go over to her, kneeling down on her other side like Daniel did. I try talking to her, brushing her forehead, and everything else I can think of to get her to calm down, but nothing works. Then I remember Daniel humming to her. I start to copy his actions. I have a vague memory of mom doing this when I was scared. Maybe she did the same thing with Sam. As soon as I start humming she begins to quiet down. I stay there sitting by her until I hear a sound.

What was that? Did I just imagine it. I quiet down and listen with everything I have. Nothing. I'm just about to go back to my former spot when I hear it again. A footstep. And it was getting closer. I get my zat gun ready. My heart is pounding in my chest. Closer, the footsteps are coming closer. I stop breathing, hoping they'll pass by like Daniel said they did earlier, but I guess I don't have the same luck he does. A shuffling of the bushes says they are coming in. I tense up as I see someone coming through the bushes. Someone I don't recognize right away. I shoot the intruder with the zat, and watch as they fall to the floor. Someone else is already taking their place though. I'm starting to panic now. I point the zat towards the new person before my panic filled mind lets me hear what is being spoken.

"Mark!"

"Dad?"

"Mark. You okay?"

"Yeah dad, I'm fine." I take a few deep breaths to calm down. After a minute I look at the form on the ground. It's Colonel O'Neill. Crap.

"Nice greeting there Mark."

"I'm sorry Colonel. I thought you might have been the other guys."

"Other guys?"

"Yeah, Daniel said that a group of the bad guys walked by a couple of hours ago."

"Where is Daniel?"

"I'm right here Jack"

"Is Sam with you?"

"Yeah." I bend down and offer him a hand up. He gratefully accepts and his small smile tells me there's no hard feelings for shooting him. I lead them back the few steps to where Sam and Daniel are. I'm sort of surprised to see the position they are in. Sam was now on her side, curled up in a fetal position. Daniel had both his arms around her and had pulled her up almost to his chest, careful not to touch her already injured back. He doesn't make any move to get up.

"Hey Danny. Nice place you got here."

"Yeah, well the neighbors are hell, but the payments are nice." He looks around for a minute before looking at the Colonel again. "Where's Teal'c?"

"He's out scouting around, trying to find some sign of SG-2 or the Jaffa. How's Sam?"

"Not so good. She's getting a fever. I think her wounds are infected, but it was so dark I couldn't see. I tried to find the flashlight, but I must have lost it somewhere along the way."

"Let's take a look and see. The bandages need to be changed anyway." I help Daniel roll Sam onto her stomach, while Colonel O'Neill takes out his flashlight and positions himself so that the light won't be seen by anyone else. Carefully they begin to undo the bandages. As the full extent of the damage is revealed I have to turn my head away. The sound of gasps and curses tell me it's bad. The numerous cuts and gashes on her back have been joined by vicious red streaks. Infection, and what looks like a bad one. After a few minutes I was able to turn my head back to the people in front of me. They were still cursing and they looked pale, but they were already cleaning her back up. They must have iron stomachs. After they finished cleaning out the wounds, they reached for the disinfectant and applied it over the wounds. Finally they started bandaging her up again and gently got her settled in the same position she was in to begin with. About that time we heard rustling up by the bushes. I froze while dad and Colonel O'Neill grabbed their weapons. I wasn't the only one to breathe a sigh of relief when Teal'c came into view.

"Glad you could make it Teal'c."

"It is indeed nice to see you again Daniel Jackson."

"Any news Teal'c?" Teal'c turned in the direction of Colonel O'Neill.

"I was unable to find SG-2, but I was able to locate the Jaffa camp. They are approximately a mile away."

"What are they up to?"

"Nothing. Another storm appears to be heading in this direction. It appears that the Jaffa are 'sitting this one out.'"

"Then I think we should do the same thing. Daniel, how much protection did this little hiding place of yours give you the last time?"

"It's pretty good Jack. Kept out most of the rain and wind, but it does get cold."

"Sounds like a good place to stay the night. If they're camped close we can't risk a fire though. Let's buddy up for the night. Teal'c, you take first watch, Daniel you get second watch and I'll take third watch." Everyone murmurs in agreement. Jack and Daniel grab some blankets and lay down by the side of the rock. Teal'c made his way back to the entrance of our little hideaway. Dad was already under the blankets with Sam, mimicking the position Daniel had, looking at me expectantly. I started to move when I realized I had no one to buddy up with. Dad must have seen my confusion because he quickly spoke to me.

"Mark. Why don't you come lay down on the other side of your sister. She's still weak and needs all the warmth we can give her." I start to head over there, and I climb under the blankets with my family. I'm on the other side of Sam, and I'm lying so that I'm facing her. Not quite sure what to do with my arms I try several different positions until dad sighs and reaches over, grabs them, and puts them across Sam.

"It's okay Mark. I remember the first time I had to share body heat with someone. It was so awkward, I remember thinking how I would never be able to talk to him again. Then after we got home he mentioned that he felt the same way. After it was out in the open it became a big joke for us, and now he's one of my best friends."

"Really dad? Who was it?"

"The then Lieutenant and now General George Hammond."

"Hammond, why does that name sound familiar."

"I still talk about him a lot. You probably heard me rambling on about him."

"Does he know about all this stuff you do?"

"Yeah, he does."

"Dad! How can you tell your friend about this but not your own son?" He gave a quick little laugh before answering.

"You don't understand Mark. Who do you think told me about all this stuff?"

"He did? I guess I thought Sam did."

"Well I guess technically speaking she did, but he was there too, and he was the one who authorized me to hear it all. George is currently the C.O. down at the Cheyenne Mountain Base, sound familiar?"

"That's were Sam works isn't it?"

"Got it in one, kid. Now Mark, I love playing twenty questions with you, but don't you think we should get some rest?"

"Actually dad, I just woke up. I got a couple hours before you guys got here. Do you mind if we just talk for awhile?"

"Sure son. What shall we talk about?" And with that we had the first real father-son talk since mom died. The one we should have had all those many years ago. We talked about everything, my life, his life, this whole Stargate thing and what exactly has been happening with the Goa'uld. And for the first time we actually started talking about mom. Not yelling, not fighting, but having a calm discussion about the one topic we would never venture into. And for the first time in my life, I actually found that I could forgive him. I slowly drifted off to sleep with the comforting sound of my father's voice echoing above me.


	8. Chapter 8

Something jerks me out of unconsciousness. Nothing physical but something is tugging at my mind. A sound. Footsteps? No, something more terrible than that. What is more terrifying than footsteps right now? I feel my mind waking up, even though my body isn't responding yet. I struggle to listen for the sound that is so disturbing. A cough. Why is that bad? Memories of last night struggle to break through the wall currently keeping my thinking to a minimum. Sam. They changed her bandage. The infection was already spreading.

It was bad, even I could tell that. Had she gotten worse over the night? Was she struggling for her last breath? I remember dad telling me about some of the few things he knew she had gone through, and I suddenly felt the need to see her, to tell myself that she was alright. Another cough pushed me to action. It's funny, one little sound and your unresponsive body jolts upright. Maybe it's a conditioned response. Just like that experiment Pavlov did, we're the dogs, the cough is the bell, and as soon as we hear it we start moving, or in the dogs' case drool. I mentally frown at the thought of who would be on the outside controlling this experiment. Probably people like the Goa'uld, if what Daniel tells me is true. Uh oh. There's that cough again. Time to move. I open my eyes and look around for my sister. She's still right beside me, sleeping or unconscious I'm not sure which and I start wondering if there's a difference. Another cough. Well at least it doesn't seem to be coming from Sam. A quick glance shows dad isn't there anymore. I carefully slide out of the blankets and stand, stretching out cramped muscles.

"Sorry Mark. I didn't mean to wake you." I turn around and find Daniel with my dad. They were sitting next to the rocks and had the cooking thing out. As I got closer I could see what they were heating up. It looked like water.

"Don't worry about it Daniel. It was time for me to get up anyway." A quick look around revealed we were the only ones here. "Where's Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c?"

"They were up at sundown. The storm seemed to be breaking and they wanted to get the jump on the Jaffa before they broke camp. Hungry?"

"Yeah dad I am. What's for breakfast?"

"Unfortunately it's instant soup. Just add hot water."

"Sounds tasty." I sit down after I grab some bowls from the gear.

"Taste's like chicken you know."

"Everything the air force has tastes like chicken Daniel. I learned that one the hard way."

"Now, now boys. It might not be the best tasting thing in the world, but it will keep you going, and that's what we need right now." Dad was mixing the powdered soup into the hot water now. After he was done he divided it into four bowls. Four? That's right don't forget about Sam. She needs food too, maybe more than the rest of us. He hands me a bowl and then turns around and digs through the pack to find something. He emerges with the medkit. He opens it and pulls out a couple of pills. He hands them to Daniel with a firm "take it" before rummaging through again. This time he takes out a packet of something. He opens it up and puts some powdered stuff into one of the bowls of soup and stirs it up with the spoon. Then he stands up and heads toward Sam.

"What's that?"

"It's antibiotics. Jack and Teal'c tried to get her to take a couple of pills before they left, but she wasn't having anything to do with that. So we're giving her some powdered stuff in the soup. Hopefully she'll at least swallow it."

"Is she getting any better?"

"Better no, but she's not getting worse either, which is a good thing." Another cough. I turn my head back to Daniel.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah, I think I just caught a little cold. Nothing to worry about. Let's go join them." I look back towards the other two and find that my sister is sitting up. Dad's right there next to her, but she seems stronger than she did the other time she was awake. Daniel and I head over there, grabbing the third bowl for dad.

"Hey Sam, how you doing?"

"Daniel?" Her voice was weak but it was music to my ears. "What are you doing here?"

"We came to get you out Sam."

"We?" She looked around for a minute before she settled her gaze on me. "Mark?"

"I'm okay Sam. Your friends came and got us out of there."

"Who else is here?"

"Jack and Teal'c should be back any minute. And then there's SG-2. Now you need to conserve your energy Sam. We're going to have a hard time getting back to the Stargate."

"Where are we?"

"That's enough questions for now kiddo. Eat some soup, get some rest and we'll talk about this later, okay."

"I'm not hungry dad."

"Try to eat as much as you can Sam."

"But dad..."

"No buts. You are going to eat that soup if I have to feed it to you myself is that clear Major."

"Sir yes sir." She followed her last statement with a quick, mocking salute before she picked up the spoon and started eating. After a few bites her hands were shaking so much that she couldn't hold the spoon still anymore. Dad reached over and took the spoon from her, her hand falling to the ground with exhaustion. He started talking to her as he was feeding her.

"So you're going to make me do this the hard way huh?"

"That's my job."

"It's in your job description to make my life a living hell? I thought your job was to get me out of hell, not put me there."

"We'll have to check that when we get back home, but I'm pretty sure it's in there somewhere." Dad paused when she starts coughing a little. As soon as she was finished he starts again. "Why do you think Colonel O'Neill has grey hair now?"

"I was actually thinking that was Daniel's job. Come on Sam, just a few more bites."

"So where are we dad?"

"We are in a forest. Just one more bite please Sam." She managed to take one more bite before she sunk back to the rock she was leaning on. "That's good Sam. Why don't you lie down again and get some sleep."

"No, do you think I could just stay here. The ground is really hurting and it's comfortable here."

"You sure? That doesn't look more comfortable than the ground?"

"You're right. I just want to sit up okay."

"Sure thing kiddo." He grabs the blanket and drapes it over her. I take off my jacket and bundled it up so she could use it as some sort of pillow. She gives me a little smile before letting her head fall into the makeshift pillow. "Just let us know if you need anything okay." She gave a little nod at the same time Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c came back.

"Jacob, how's she doing?"

"I'm doing fine sir." He jumped at the sound of her voice, clearly he thought she was still down for the count.

"Carter. Don't do that. You about gave me a heart attack."

"Don't do what sir? Speak up now or get kidnaped in the first place."

"Both. They both are very bad for my health, not to mention yours."

"I'll try to remember that sir." She gave him a little grin but it was obvious to everyone she was using the last of her energy to do so. He matched her grin with a small one of his own before becoming serious again.

"You do that, but right now you need to get some rest. And I need to talk to Jacob. We'll be right back." Colonel O'Neill all but pulled my father back toward the opening. I look up and see that Teal'c and Daniel are joining them. I want to follow, but don't know if I'm allowed to. When Daniel looks back and beckons me forward I jump at the chance.

"What's going on Jack?"

"Osiris has captured SG-2. The Jaffa are taking them back to the palace right now."

"My God. Are they alright?"

"It looks like they are just unconscious, but you never know with snakeheads."

"It is likely that Osiris will use them to try to get ourselves to surrender to her." Teal'c spoke grimly, obviously not overjoyed at the thought of watching another one of Osiris's torture sessions.

"That's my thought too. And I don't even want to think about how she's going to go about doing that. We've got to get them out of there and fast. Any thoughts as to how?"

"Jack, this may be the break that we need."

"How so Daniel?"

"Think about it. She has no idea how many people came through the Stargate so she'll probably keep searching the woods and the mountains for awhile right Teal'c."

"I believe so."

"That means that she'll have to divide her resources again. She'll have to take some men from the Stargate or from the search teams to guard SG-2."

"Still not following Danny."

"Well, how many people do you know who would walk into a prison. The Jaffa guarding SG-2 should be pretty easy to overcome. If we can take them out fast enough they'll never know what hit them. Then we go to the Stargate. It should have less Jaffa guarding it and we should be able to take control, at least long enough to gate home."

"One small point about your plan Daniel. We're in the forest. The palace isn't in the forest. And what the hell are we suppose to do with Osiris?" O'Neill turned expectantly toward Daniel.

"Well, point A we would have to get back to the palace. And point B... we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Sounds like a plan to me Jack."

"Thank you Dad." O'Neill responded sarcastically before turning to Teal'c. "Teal'c what do you think."

"Daniel Jackson's plan could be successful."

"What about the Jaffa in the forest?"

"They are young, poorly trained. We should have no problem avoiding them."

"Well one things for sure, we have to get back to the palace. So unless anyone else comes up with a better plan before we get there we'll go with plan A."

"What's plan B Colonel?" I couldn't stop myself from asking.

"Plan B is to run back to the forest and think of a plan C."


	9. Chapter 9

I cautiously look around the stream we are waiting at. We have been traveling for the most part of that day, resting only when Sam looked like she was going to collapse. She was still awake when we left and insisted that she could walk, so we let her walk. I pretty much stayed by her the whole time. At first it was me and dad, until Daniel suggested that we make a ruckus in the woods. I guess he thought that if we made it known we were still there, Osiris would send out more Jaffa to find us.

Colonel O'Neill, Teal'c and my father all agreed with that tactic and the Colonel and Teal'c left us to go make some noise. That left my dad in charge of our trek back to the palace. Daniel wanted to help support Sam, but he was worried that he might give whatever he had to her. That really wasn't a good thing right now. So it was basically me helping her out for the whole trip.

Now we were waiting at a stream where the Colonel and Teal'c said they would meet us at. Dad is getting something out of the medkit for Sam, while Daniel is using the stream to cool down with. His coughing is getting worse and he's getting a fever, not quite as bad as Sam's, but still troubling. A faint rustling of the leaves is all the warning we get before our two companions join us at the stream.

"Any luck?"

"It appears so. Five more Jaffa have been dispatched to the forest. I believe our deception is being paid for."

"What Teal'c is trying to say is that they're buying it. And hopefully there is only about five Jaffa guarding the Stargate now. Hey there Danny, you okay?"

"Fine Jack. Just a little hot."

"Okay. We're almost to the palace now so here's the plan. Daniel, as much as I would love for you to come with us so you can die again we need stealth on this one. Your coughs would give us away in an instant. So you get to stay in the forest and cover our escape route. Think you can do that?"

"Yeah Jack. I can handle that."

"Carter and Mark are going to stay here with you, so you'll need to keep them safe too."

"Sir, I can't believe you're saying that. I'm fine and..." Her protest was cut off by one very angry Jack O'Neill.

"Stop Carter! I am only going to say this once. You are not fine. Your back is severely wounded, your wounds are infected, and you have a fever. Not to mention the amount of pain your in. I am not, repeat not, going to let you follow us into that place so you can become Osiris's play thing again. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir." She said it so quietly that I almost missed the relief in her voice.

"Jacob, Teal'c, and I will go in and free our guys. Mark you stay here with Daniel. Carter you stay too. No objections. Danny?"

"Got it Jack."

"Good. Let's move out." We silently approach the edge of the forest. Colonel O'Neill finds a good spot for us to watch at. As we settle in they head towards the palace. I watch as they move toward the building. It feels like an eternity while we sit there, waiting. Now I know why my sister wanted to go with them. They knew what was going on, we were just waiting for them to come back. I wonder if this is how my mother felt all those times when dad had missions. Then something happens. We hear gunfire. That's not a good sound. I'm no military expert, but I don't think they were supposed to shoot their guns. That means something is wrong. I look over toward Daniel and Sam. Daniel's face is pale with understanding, while Sam is trying desperately to get up. It doesn't look like she will though, she's just not strong enough yet to stand without help. I think about asking if we should go in there, but to my utter surprise I answer my own unspoken question. No. And not because I'm afraid either, because I am terrified. It's 'No' because I would have no idea what to do, and my two companions are still hurt. The best thing to do would be to wait out here and hope they get back outside where we can cover them.

Looking over at Daniel I see he has come to the same conclusion. There's nothing we can do but sit back and wait. Well, maybe not sit back. More like look from side to side and jump from every little sound and wait. Hours, minutes, maybe only seconds pass before we see movement. Unfortunately it comes from the forest. Oh shit. Osiris. I look over to Daniel to see if he see's her. From his expression, he does. She marches up to the palace with four Jaffa. Just as she reaches the door she stops. She looks around for some time before bellowing out commands to the Jaffa and looking in our direction. Seconds later there's another brilliant flash of light and oblivion takes me again.

Darkness. That's the first thing I recognize as I try to get past the fuzz that is currently where by brain should be. Blinding darkness. Blinding. That doesn't sound to good. At least it's only temporary. Wait, how do I know that. This has happened before, hasn't it. This is what got me into this whole mess to begin with. Maybe it was just a dream. Maybe a car really did hit me and my mind went haywire. I mean other planets, aliens, Stargates, those things only happen on TV. Well I guess there's only one way to find out. That's to open my eyes and see. I start to open my eyes when I remembered the blindness that followed. Maybe I should wait for a minute for the blindness to pass. But it looks like my moment of peace is over. My mind starts letting in the voices that have been calling, and apparently my aborted eye opening is enough to get their attention. My name. They're calling my name. I can hear my father, the Colonel, Teal'c and a couple of other voices I don't know the names of. So much for the car theory. I completely open my eyes this time, thankful that I can start to see outlines of objects. I recognize my father's face and mumble something about being okay. I turn my head now and I see Daniel on the ground beside me.

"Is he okay?" Dad answers as he helps me sit up.

"Yeah Mark, he's going to be fine. The shock grenade can't kill you, just render you unconscious. It just hit Daniel harder because he's sick."

"What happened?"

"We have no idea. We got inside and managed to free SG-2 like we wanted to, but the Jaffa were waiting for us in the hall. They had us pinned down for hours. Then they just got up and walked away. We have no idea why." I looked around again. They people I thought were SG-2 had various wounds on their body, Colonel O'Neill also had some kind of bandage across his chest. Even Teal'c and dad were showing signs of the firefight. It must have been pretty bad.

"Where's Sam?" I ask when I realize who is missing from our little group.

"I don't know. Teal'c and I already checked the palace and the surrounding woods. She's not there. We're hoping she followed all those Jaffa to the Stargate."

"Dad, she couldn't have done that. She couldn't even stand up."

"I know Mark. Can you stand. We need to move fast."

I nod. Reaching out my hand so dad could help me stand up. Teal'c bends down and picks up Daniel, while Colonel O'Neill helps one of the other soldiers who has a nasty looking burn in his leg. We followed a path that has been used recently. It leads to a valley that had a giant stone ring. As we stand on the path leading down to the valley we can see a bunch of the Jaffa standing together.

The ring starts to spin and I hear Colonel O'Neill say something about them getting away. That makes no sense to me, they were in the middle of the valley, where could they go. But apparently it made perfect sense to dad and the other people who were walking because we start running towards them. As we neared the group of Jaffa something clicked into place on the ring and a giant circle of blue water splashed out towards me. The Jaffa had noticed our approach and were aiming their staff weapons in our direction.

They were getting ready to shoot when a voice called out to them. A voice I know very well. The voice of my sister. Only it wasn't her voice. It was distorted and wrong and evil. I stop when I saw her emerge from the group of Jaffa. It was her, only different. She looked directly at us and said something to the Jaffa. One by one they left until it was only her and two guards. She turned her back on us and rose up the steps to the blue puddle thingy. Just as she was about to go through she turned and looked at us again. This time her eyes flashed. She held our gaze for another second before she turned and stepped into the blue light, the two Jaffa following her.

As whatever that was shut down I look over to my companions. They were all pale and standing there staring at the ring. It looked like they had all seen a ghost. No, not a ghost. Something far worse. Something that terrified these men to their core. The silence was broken by a simple question from Colonel O'Neill.

"Anyone see the address?"


	10. Chapter 10

I feel like my world is crashing down now. It's been a week since my little adventure. A week since I last saw my sister. I admit that I still didn't know what was going on. When Teal'c went over and made the ring thingy work, which I now know is called a Stargate, I thought that I would see my sister on the other side. O man, was I going to give her a piece of my mind, leaving us there like that. She scared us half to death. Then we entered the wormhole and I found myself surrounded by grey concrete and a bunch of people I could identify as military men. Medics were rushing around, trying to help all the people who were injured. Soldiers with guns were pointing at us like we were the enemy. One of the medics was trying to get me to lie down, but I kept looking for the one face I knew had to be here. One voice over all the others grabbed my attention. "Colonel O'Neill. Where is Major Carter?"

"Major Carter has been compromised." Five little words and my world came crashing down. Not only mine, it seemed liked everybody in the room tensed up, paled, or shot fleeting looks to Colonel O'Neill. Compromised. He made it sound so final, so bad. I don't know if it was the despair in that little statement brought to the room or if it was my own exhaustion that was coming back with a vengeance but I soon found myself in the comforting grip of darkness once again.

The next time I awoke I realized I was in some sort of hospital. The walls were still the same grey concrete so I was pretty sure I was still wherever I was brought to. I could hear beeping sounds of heart monitors, but thankfully none of that stuff was by me. That meant that I was fine right? I looked around the room. I saw Daniel and Colonel O'Neill in beds next to each other, Teal'c sitting between them. A nurse or a doctor was hovering over them. The other people who were on that planet were at the other end of the room. I was surprised to find that dad had taken a seat at my bedside. He was looking at me with tears in his eyes. Tears that told me what I had hoped was a nightmare was real. "She's gone, isn't she?" I didn't think I said that very loud, but the next thing I knew that medical person who was hovering around Daniel and the Colonel was suddenly hovering around me. Suffering through her quick examination I kept my eyes focused on my dad's. He returned the gesture, never breaking the eye contact.

"Dr. Frasier, is he alright."

"Yes sir. I can release him into your care if you wish." He nodded and the petite doctor turned toward me. "Just take it easy and come back in if you need anything." As she's saying this I remove my eyes from my father and look at her. Her eyes are red and puffy, like she just got done crying. That doesn't make sense. Doctors aren't supposed to cry, especially not military doctors. There's also a sadness in her eyes that counters the quick smile she gives me before heading back to her perch between the two beds.

"Son, I think we need to go somewhere private and talk." I agree with him and he helps me off the bed and leads me into one of the many rooms on the base. There he tells me everything, all the horrible, ugly, nasty truths that Daniel had just touched upon during our talk on the planet. My sister was now the enemy, one of the Goa'uld who do such nasty things they make Hitler look like a boy scout. He told me they will still look for her, they'll never give up looking for her. But he also told me it is unlikely they will ever find her.

Dad tells me they declared Sam MIA. Dad has a week before he needs to leave again. I decided to spend the time with him. To be completely honest I really don't remember much of that week. Just bits and pieces, mostly people coming to say how sorry they are for my loss and the numbing realization that my perfect life was over. But I do remember how dad never left my side, the way he acted like the parent he should have acted like when mom died.

But now it's time to get back into the real world, to the living world. Dad has to go back to the Tok'ra and I'm on a plane for San Diego. I promised I wouldn't say anything about their secret as long as they kept me informed about any news with Sam. I don't think General Hammond liked that, but dad and Colonel O'Neill had the look on their faces that said they were going to tell me no matter what. I don't know what I'm going to tell my family about where I've been the last couple of weeks. They said they already took care of that and told them some cover story. I have a copy of it just in case I forget. I guess I really should read it over once more just be sure. But I can't stop my thoughts about where my life is now. A year ago if this had happened I wouldn't have been nearly as affected as I am now. But that was a year ago, a year when I didn't have my family.

So many things change in a year. I got my family back, my whole family, just to have it ripped apart again. I never knew how much I missed them until that day they were standing unexpectedly on my doorstep. I know my sister isn't gone, and they're going to do all they can to get her back. I just have to keep my hope alive and hope that one day they'll be able to come back to my doorstep together. One day she'll find her way back. One day.


End file.
